Trafford Park - 100 Years - Salford, UK - Commercial Commemorations on Waymarking.com

The Manchester Ship Canal opened in 1894 and connected Manchester to the coast at the Mersey estuary near Liverpool. This enabled Manchester to become Britain’s 3rd busiest port even though it is 64 km inland.

The canal can accommodate sea going vessels with a maximum length of 183 metres but by modern standards this limits the size of ship that can access the port. The main port at Salford Quays closed in 1982 for commercial handling and ships now dock on canal side wharves.

Trafford Park is an area located opposite Salford Quays, on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal. Until the late 19th century it was the ancestral home of the Trafford family, who sold it to financier Ernest Terah Hooley in 1896. Occupying an area of 4.7 square miles (12 km2), it was the first planned industrial estate in the world, and remains the largest in Europe.

Trafford Park declined in importance at the same time that the docks themselves declined.

The Trafford Park Urban Development Corporation, formed in 1987, reversed the estate's decline. In the 11 years of its existence the park attracted 1,000 companies, generating 28,299 new jobs and £1.759 billion of private-sector investment. As of 2008, there were 1,400 companies within Trafford Park, employing an estimated 35,000 people".

After Salford Quays closed the area around about became derelict but has since become the largest urban regeneration project in the UK. This regenration has coincided with the work undertaken by the Trafford Park Urban Development Corporation. The site has been developed with a mixture of housing, offices, theatres, museums and retail outlets. There are a number of public art installations around the area.

To celebrate their centenery the Trafford Park Development Corporation commissioned this piece of artwork at the side of the quays.

The installation was designed by the artist James Wines and created with the assistance of John King of Liverpool. Silent Cargoes consists of assortment of objects that are associated with the industries of Trafford Park and the Salford docks. The objects include machinery, barrels, bales, boxes, metal pipes, tools, oil drums, chains, trolleys, anvil and horseshoes. The work covers an area of some 350 square metres.

All the objects are of a silver colour and this effect was achieved by hot dipping them and galvanising them in zinc.

Anniversary Year: 1996 Year of Event, Organization or Occurance: 1896 Address: Salford QuaysGreater Manchester United Kingdom Website: [Web Link]

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